A Comparison between Bahay Kubo and Bahay na Bato

People all over the world needs a shelter to live in, it can be house, a condominium, an apartment, a motor home or any place that can you feel at home. First I want to define the word house it is a structure intended or used as a habitation or shelter for animals of any kind; but especially, a building or edifice for the habitation of man; a dwelling place, a mansion. A house serves as a dwelling place for people mostly families; it is a place wherein the people interact with their families and also other people. it is where we grow up and it is where we learn the first things in life. Shelter is one of the most important need of a person and in the Philippines we have different types of house during the early times and it is namely the Bahay Kubo and the Bahay na Bato. These two types of house still exist today and now serve as an historical landmark on what the Philippines look like during the early times. Both of the houses are very unique and it is a trademark for the Filipinos.
I want to differentiate the two types of the early houses in the Philippines the Bahay Kubo and the Bahay na Bato. First is the Bahay Kubo or Nipa hut, it is an indigenous house because it is made out of indigenous materials and when we say indigenous it means ‘’natural’’. During the time before the Spanish period native Filipinos live in a Bahay Kubo or Nipa Hut. It is traditionally constructed with bamboo tied together and covered with a roof using the nipa or anahaw leaves. So I think that is why anahaw is the national leaf of the Philippines (I guess). It is raised on stilts or post because native Filipinos thought about flood, snakes and insects that can go to the house that is why they think of a solution to the problem that is why they raised the nipa hut on stilts. I think we should still apply this style or architectural solution because right now we experience flash flood often and many people have died because of it. I think this is one of the possible solutions for the problem. The Bahay Kubo serves as an icon in culture of the Philippines because it represents bayanihan. Until now Bahay Kubo is still used mostly in the rural areas because of the fresh air and lack of electricity or power supply in the area. It is very comfortable to live in a Bahay Kubo based on what my classmate told me about his experience living in a Nipa hut. It has natural ventilation because air passes through the walls. According to this link:http://en.wikipilipinas.org/index.php?title=Bahay_Kubo_(architecture) the parts of a nipa hut are:

A typical bahay kubo only has one, large, open, multi-purpose room for dwelling, called bulwagan. It has a cellar, called silong where most household chores are done. This area serves as the area for livestock pens, storage space, workspace and granary. The walls are made of nipa and cogon leaves or sawali or woven bamboo, and there are large windows on all sides, which keep the interior well-ventilated. The windows havetukod or “legs” that hold the swinging shades open during the day, and secure it back in place at night. Another feature of the the bahay kubo is ladder or hagdan which can easily be removed at night or when the owners are out. Likewise, some huts have an open back porch or batalan where household chores are done and where the jars of water are placed.

                         And lastly is the Bahay na Bato, is the upgraded version of Bahay Kubo or Nipa Hut.  It is a 19^th century townhouse; it is result of the flourishing economic and social aspect of the Philippines and also as an architectural innovation. It has similarities with the Bahay Kubo/Nipa Hut; it has a post-lintel construction and natural ventilation because of its wide windows and high ceiling. It can withstand earthquakes because of its wooden legs and a stone skirt. It is flexible and stable because of its wooden frame. In this link: http://www.librarylink.org.ph/featarticle.asp?articleid=110 an article discussed the parts of the Bahay na Bato namely:

                         The living quarters are elevated and are reached through an interior stairway located in the zaguan on the ground floor. The zaguan with its naked stonework is a grim entrance hall but with its abundant space is the perfect storeroom for just about everything. The stairs, are not only a means of access but also the setting for a stately arrival. A surrounding balustrade detached from the wall provides room all around for welcoming committee and prolonged farewells.

The stairs, on the other hand, lead up to the caida or upper entrance hall. Opening to the caida is the sala or living room. Bedrooms flank the sala and nearby is the dining room. At the rear of the house are the kitchen and next to it, the open-air azotea. Running along the front and sides of the house and flanking the major rooms is the volada, a gallery which protects the rooms from the heat of the sun. Along the volada is an elaborate system of windows. The broad, massive window sill is grooved and holds two to three sets of sliding shutters: a set of wooden louvers or jalousies, a set of capiz or oyster shell shutters, and occasionally, a set of glass-paned shutters. Between the window sill and the floor runs the ventanilla, with sliding wooden shutters and wooden balustrades or iron grills. Wide double doors are flung open to join each room to adjacent rooms. With all doors open, the house becomes one big hall. The interior of the bahay na bato is a striking example of a space surrounded by space. Running above the partitions are panels of wooden fretwork, which allow the air within the house to circulate.

                     The two types of early houses in the Philippines are truly remarkable and I hope someday I can experience a day living on it.

‘’Be grateful for the home you have, knowing that at this moment, all you have is all you need.’’

-Sarah Ban Breathnach (American author)

Sidewalk

Walking is an everyday and all day activity of humans. We walk on the street, we cross the road to go to where ever we want but we mostly walk on a sidewalk. Every day I walk on the sidewalk when I go to school, I noticed that vendors block the way and some sidewalks are blocked by post and even cars parked illegally. Sometimes or most of the time it is difficult to pass through because of the vendors and when there is a lot of people passing you can almost trip because of the things blocking the way.
First, I want to define the word sidewalk, it is a way or path or pavement located on the side of the street or road where people walk to go to their desired destination like school, office, market, mall and etc. Here in the Philippines many sidewalks are broken, small in terms of space and blocked by vendors. Person with Disability (PWD) can’t easily pass thru sidewalks because some are not accessible for them that why it’s difficult for them to go to where they want to. Some of the sidewalks are not well designed for the use of the different types of people.

 
According to the Revised Rules and Standards for economic and Socialized Housing Projects to Implement Batas Pambansa Blg. 220, the standard measurement for a path walk shall have a width of 3.0 meters intended only to provide pedestrian access to property for socialized housing projects. But some sidewalks have a width of 1.5 meters like in Pasig. Post and things should not block the sidewalk because it may cause accidents and traffic among the pedestrians passing through the way. According to Chapter 10 Section 1002 and Chapter 11 Section 1105 of the National Building Code of the Philippines the following should be implemented in terms of sidewalks:

Section 1002. Projection into Alleys or Streets

(a) No part of any structure or its appendage shall project into any alley or street, national road or public highway except as provided in this Code.
(b) Footings located at least 2.40 meters below grade along national roads or public highway may project not more than 300 millimeters beyond the property line.
(c) Foundations may be permitted to encroach into public sidewalk areas to a width not exceeding 500 millimeters; provided, that the top of the said foundations is not less than 600 millimeters below the established grade; and provided further, that said projection does not obstruct any existing utility such as power, communication, gas, water, or sewer lines, unless the owner concerned shall pay the corresponding entities for the rerouting of the parts of the affected utilities.

Section 1105. Walkway

(a) When the Building Official authorizes a sidewalk to be fenced or closed, or in case there is no sidewalk in front of the building site during construction or demolition, a temporary walkway of not less than 1.20 meters wide shall be provided.
(b) The walkway shall be capable of supporting a uniform live load of 650 kilograms per square meter. A durable wearing surface shall be provided throughout the construction period.

Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) released projects which involve sidewalks and overpasses that are accessible and safe for the pedestrians and for PWD. But some people criticize it as a waste of money. I want to share a link of the article I read about:

http://www.gmanetwork.com/news/story/120423/news/nation/mmda-projects-not-friendly-to-handicapped-ncda  According to the article the projects done are not accessible for Persons with Disability like the railings on the side of the sidewalk and the overpass that PWDs can’t use because it might injure them. I hope next time they should plan well and make decisions in making the project because they can waste the money of our country which is suffering from poverty.

Sidewalk vendors are also a problem in the passage of pedestrians in the sidewalk that is why the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority (MMDA) is currently clearing the sidewalks and asking the sidewalk vendors to go sell their products elsewhere where they can’t block or hinder pedestrians. I think the clearing operations of MMDA is not that effective because the vendors leave the sidewalk then come back some time that the authorities already left.

Some of the sidewalks here in the Philippines are over the sewer and some of them are open and not passable like in this picture:

I hope the officials in our community repair the sidewalks and other public structures so that people can use it efficiently and safely. The standard measurement of a sidewalk for me as a suggestion shall have a width of at least 2.50 to 3.00 meters so that it will be wide enough for the pedestrians’ and PWD to pass thru. I hope to see in the future that sidewalks are clear and PWDs’ can easily go around where they want.

“Do not block sidewalks, sidewalks are for people.”

–       Former MMDA Chairman Bayani Fernando

Review on University of the Philippines’ churches, Parish of Holy Sacrifice and Church of the Risen Lord

A church is a building designed for people to have a place to worship. It may be small and simple, or just large enough to accommodate a large quantity of people; or it may be huge and complicated, containing different spaces for different religious activities and observances, as in a cathedral.

In the history of architecture, there are many churches designed and built for the people to worship our Great Creator. Because of the need of a place to worship, the rise of the Architecture of Christianity was established. Many churches, abbey, chapel, tabernacle, minster, meeting house, cathedrals and temples were built in the early times like the Pantheon of Rome it’s a temple dedicated to all the gods. Gothic style was also applied in churches, and that lead to the birth of Gothic Architecture. Many styles and forms were used in designing churches.

Churches have been a place for people to renew their spiritual aspect in life that’s why there are many churches in each place in the world. Here in the Philippines there are approximately churches. We Filipinos are very religious people and we always allot time every week for us to go to church with the whole family.

Last Saturday, November 26, 2011 me and my friends went to the University of the Philippines Diliman Campus to observe the two churches namely, the Parish of Holy Sacrifice and Church of the Risen Lord. The two churches have differences and similarities. But first I want to characterize each church and give a brief history about it.

First is the Parish of Holy Sacrifice or also known as the Church of Holy Sacrifice, it is the first circular shape church and the first thin-shell concrete dome in the Philippines. It serves as a landmark in the University of the Philippines and due to its architectural design it is known as a National Historical Landmark and Cultural Treasure by an award winning body. When I went there I experienced the cool air going through the whole church because it has natural ventilation and natural lighting due to its open sides supported by pillars instead of walls so that the spaces inside will not be block. The chairs are in a semi-circular form unlike the straight chairs in other churches. The center of the church has a circular skylight. In the partition in the sides of the church there are murals, it shows the chronological arrangement of how Jesus Christ was born and how He died and rose again. The Parish of Holy Sacrifice is a type of church that is centralized.

  

Leandro Locsin originally designed the church for the Ossorio family but unfortunately the family left for the United States. But later on John Delaney an official of the University of the Philippines asked Locsin to design a church, so the proposed design for the Ossorio family’ church  became the design of the Parish of Holy Sacrifice. The different parts of the church were beautified by different artist namely Arturo Luz, he designed the floor of the church, Vicente Manansala and Ang Kiukok designed the Stations of the Cross, and Napoleon Abueva, he designed the double-sided crucifix and altar base of the church. The following artists are now recognized as National Artist. The Parish of Holy Sacrifice is the first circular church to have its altar at the center in the Philippines.

The Church of the Risen Lord is a Protestant church, Protestant meaning a member of church rejecting papal authority and some Roman Catholic doctrines. The shape of the church is similar to a parabola a mathematical curve, formed by the intersection of a cone with a plane parallel to its side. The design symbolizes the belief that there are imperfections outside the Christian world and all of our ambitions to be perfect are incompetent. When I went inside of the church I experienced comfort while sitting in the chairs because it has foam and its cool inside even though there are only few electric fans because it has many windows that provide natural lighting and natural ventilation and the walls have openings that allows air to pass through. It also has a balcony where the music team is situated. The Church of the Risen Lord is a type of church that is a basilica, which means a building with a central nave, a columned aisle on each side and typically a terminal semi-circular apse. The church consists of the main chapel, the student center known as the GumersindoGarcia Hall and a child care center known as Christian Child Care Center

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The church was established because of the Protestant students who generate a movement called Christian Youth Movement. After that they seek help from a religious organization. Cesar Cancio and his architectural firm designed the church.

From the two churches I’ve observed I want to site its similarities and differences. First are the similarities, both of the church has natural ventilation and natural lighting. They both have unique architectural design and they are both surrounded by trees. Second and lastly are the differences, the Church of the Risen Lord is a type of church that is a basilica while The Parish of Holy Sacrifice is a type of church that is centralized. They have different shape the Church of the Risen Lord has a parabolic shape while The Parish of Holy Sacrifice has a circular/ dome shape. And then they have different arrangement of chairs due to the form of the structure.

In architecture, churches are one of the most structures ever built because of its function in the lives of the people using it. In the next generations to come many churches will be built and some of the churches in the present will set as a landmark in the future I guess some will be tourist spots because of its legacy. I hope someday I can design a church because a church is an important structure for the people, because it is a place to worship the Greatest Architect that designed us all our Almighty God.

My Manifesto on Architecture

My Manifesto on Architecture

Throughout my childhood I’ve been fascinated of drawing houses and buildings. When I’m in high school I started researching about architecture, how architects design and plan for a specific structure and what are the factors to be considered before you design. And when I became aware of it I told my parents that when I reach college I want to study architecture.

During the first semester I find it difficult to adjust. I have plenty of sleepless nights because of the plates given to us. But I realized an important thing in studying architecture, in designing a particular structure no one can take away what design you want, no one will dictate to you want your design should look your professor will just give suggestion but not the design. For me architecture is the course that gives you freedom to draw what you want but needs all of your time, effort and money. Architecture is a course you can’t finish if don’t have the passion of studying. Other students say that we just draw and draw but it’s not that easy it takes a lot of patience and skills to finish plates on time.

There are two architects that I admire both from the modern times. First, is none other than Frank Lloyd Wright, American architect, who pioneered modernism in architecture, considered one of the greatest architects of 20th-century architecture. Wright avoided anything that might be called a personal style. Through all his designs, he was guided by principles that he termed organic architecture. By this he meant that every building should relate harmoniously to its natural surroundings and that a building should not be a static, boxlike enclosure but a dynamic structure, with open, flowing interior spaces. To achieve this organic design, he used geometric units, or modules, that generated a grid. I like two of Wright’s works the Guggenheim Museum in New York City and the Fallingwater House in Pennsylvania.

The two structures are very remarkable and impressive; they both blend in the surroundings. I hope someday I can make something remarkable too.  I like the quotation of Frank Lloyd Wright “No house should ever be built on a hill or on anything. It should be of the hill. Belonging to it. Hill and house should live together each the happier for the other.” He really wants the structure to be a part of the surroundings. I think Frank Lloyd Wright’s principle is great and I also apply it whenever we are asked to design a structure in a particular place. The second architect that I like is a modern architect Moshe Safdie, Canadian architect and teacher, known for his innovative manufactured housing complexes and modernist public buildings that draw out historical styles and traditions. His works are my most favorite structures, the Marina Bay Sands and the Artscience Museum in Singapore.

The two structures are really aesthetically pleasing and it is a tourist spot in Singapore. Moshe Safdie said that “From the inside out, every element in the design of the ArtScience Museum reinforces the institution’s philosophy of creating a bridge between the arts and sciences. The building combines the aesthetic and functional, the visual and the technological, and for me, really represents the forward looking spirit of Singapore.” I like Safdie’s philosophy that art and science together can excite and inform visitors in a new way’. The two structures represent Singapore to the world.

Now I want to compare classical architecture to modern architecture. Classical architecture pertains to the building systems and forms of ancient Greece and Rome. The use of classical orders like the Corinthian order and other ancient methods of construction the materials are also different some used mud, bricks and clay and steel. The structures are having complex shapes and styles like the Gothic Cathedrals, temples and other structures. The mentality of the architects in the early times is to design a structure primarily to meet the needs of the persons who are going to use it and to be aesthetically pleasing in the eyes of the people.

“Modern architecture is the absence of style.” -Quinlan Terry, British architect. I’m not really sure what the quotation means, but like what Frank Lloyd Wright said he avoided anything that might be called a personal style, maybe the quotation means that in every design you make it should be different from the other designs that you have done. Your design shouldn’t be predictable like the structures today; architects tend to design structures that are not done yet.  The mentality of the architects today is if it’s already used (pertaining to design) I will not use it again and I will make a new one, one that’s original and not copies of others work. “Form follows function” originally expressed by Frank Lloyd Wright’s early mentor Louis Sullivan, meaning that the result of design should derive directly from its purpose, is the common principle in modern architecture.

The current trends in architecture to today is primarily being environmental. Designing structures that can help reduce the use electricity and help lessen pollution. Many buildings have solar panels and plants in the roof top and some have wind turbines just to produce energy and help the environment and the people. I admire one structure in Bahrain which is the Bahrain World Trade Center which uses a wind turbine to produce and uses electricity in the day for the whole building. It is the first skyscraper in the world to integrate wind turbines into its design.

Global warming has been an issue in architecture because it seeks solution through the structures being designed today. The climate affects the comfort ability of the people using the structure and it affects the way people function in the institution.

According to the Architecture Student Blog Archives there’s a new trend in architecture, “Ornamentation is the function”. This trend implies that the structures today functions as a decoration or beautification to the surroundings. Creativity in architecture has been replaced by commercialism. The technological innovations have brought a great change in the field of architecture. Commercialism has become the heart of design. I hope this trend will stop because the creativity of the architects is not used because of commercialism.

I want to end with a quotation “An architect’s most useful tools are an eraser at the drafting board, and a wrecking bar at the site.” – Frank Lloyd Wright